Press button



Dec. 1 1925. 1,563,357

A. C. GAYNOR PRESS BUTTON Filed Dec. 22. 922

L1 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 1, 1925.

ARTHUR C. GAYNOR, 0F STRATFOBD, CONNECTICUT.

BUTTON.

Application filed December 22, 1922. Serial No. 608,443.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR C. GAYNOR, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Stratford, county of Fairfi'eld, State of Connecticut,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Press Buttons, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improved press buttons adapted and constructedto cause an electrical contact thus closing a circuit to sound an alarm,or for analogous purposes.

The principal objects of the invention are to provide a strong andrugged structure of few parts which can be readily assembled anddisassembled; to always provide for true and efficient electricalcontact and which will be neat in appearance and in expensive tomanufacture.

Other objects will appear from the following description and claims.

Referring to the drawings which form a part of this specification:

Fig. l is a plan view of the upper face of the press button structureembodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a rear view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4 '-4: of Fig. 1, showing in full lines thecontact closed, and in its open position in dotted lines.

Fig. 5 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 2 with the insulating membercarrying the terminals in position of removal from the structure.

Fig. 6 is a plan showing the dome shaped blank in its initial step offormation.

Fig 6 is a section on line 6-6 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 7 shows the dome-shaped element in the second stage of manufacture.

Fig. 7 is a section on line 7 7 a of Fig. 7.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of the domeshaped element with the clampingprongs in position to be inserted in the standard opening in the plate.

Fig. 9 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation of theassembly of the dome-shaped portion in the plate.

Fig. 10 is a plan view partly broken away showing the assembly after theprongs have been turned down to clamp the dome shaped portion to theplate.

Fig. 10 is a section on line 1 10' of Fig. 10.

Fig. 11 is a section of the modified form of the press button showing aninsulation between the two metal portions which is useful in certaininstallations.

Fig. 12 is a side elevation of the press button with the outer metalportion removed.

Fig. 13 is a plan View of the same.

The press buttons are made in a number of designs, rectangular, roundand oval, and so forth, with all manner of filigree work on the exposedfaces. I have, however, shown in the drawings, in the interest ofclearness, a smooth rectangular face plate 2 provided with a downwardlyextending border 4, a dome shaped portion 6, a metallic press button 8,each of which is plain and not decorated. In the upper portion of theplate is the usual indentation 10 with holding means 12 for name cards,and so forth, and also suitable holes 14 through which the securingmeans may pass.

With special reference now to the drawings in which the same referencecharacters indicate the same parts in the several views, 20 is anopening of standard size cut into the plate 2, the opening beingsubstantially round in contour, yet at intervals throughout itscircumference are cut notches 22, 23, 24 and 26, the notch 26 beingrelatively much wider than the notches 22 to 24. The dome shaped element6 is stamped out of a sheet of metal and formed over a dome of steel sowhen the dome shaped element is completed there will be an opening 30 inits center, and tongues 32, preferably three in number, extending fromthe lower edge thereof.

The dome is preferably pressed from sheet metal in one operation, thepunch in a press descending onto the sheet metal, cutting out a circlewith three holding tongues, and stretching this piece over a dome ofsteel to acquire its shape, the tongues lying in a plane at right anglesto the axis of the dome. The dome is then pushed through a form or dieof such a diameter as to cause the tongues to bend out of their originalplane and into a position parallel to the axis of the dome.

The circumference of the lower edge of the dome is slightly larger thanthatof the circumference of the standard opening 20 in the plate 2, sothat the edge of the dome in assembly will rest upon the plate and liejust outside of the inner edge of the opening 20. Two of the tongues 32fit into thev notches 22 and 23 and the remaining tongue 32 fits intothe notch 24. These tongues are then bent over to securely clamp thedome to the plate.

A piece of insulating material, P, oblong in shape and of sufficientlength to be held within the dome and against the edges of the circularopening 20 is fitted into the dome and is held against the plate bymeans of the spring S which engages the insulation plate on theunderside thereof, and extends into the press button 8 and held in placethereby separating the press button from the plate of insulation andholding it under tension. The insulating plate is chopped from a stripof fibre in one operation and the terminal screws i0 and 41 are thenscrewed into the holes formed in the plate, the screws thus making athread for themselves in the comparatively soft fibre and eliminatingthe necessity of cutting a thread, i. e. threading the hole in aseparate operation.

The line insulated wire W consisting of two wires C and C is thensecured to the respective terminals 1-0 and :1 in the usual manner,which are so placed in the insulating block that the flange 18 of themetal press button 8, when pressed by the operator against the spring,will impinge against the terminals a0 and 41, thus completing thecircuit.

The plate of insulation is installed by inserting one end underneath theflange F and the other end fitting into the notch 26, the spring andpush button being first inserted in their respective position, the blockof insulation being subsequently turned horizontally in either directionso that both ends will engage and be held against the flanges f and fwhich are formed on the plate 2.

lVhile the press button 8 may be made wholly of metal, I find in someinstallations it is desirable to pro *ide an insulated press button. Asit is desired that the face of the press button be also of metal, Iprovide a button made up of two domes and 81 litting into each otherwith a layer of insulation held between the metal portions 80 and 81,thereby insulating the metal against which the hand of the operatorengages from the metal portion 81, the flange 83 of which impingesagainst the terminals 40 and 41.

By means of this assembly I provide a metallic press button held bymeans of a spring in operative relation with the floating insulatingpiece of fiber which carries the two terminals or contact screws andagainst which spring the button is pressed to cont-act with theterminals and close the circuit.

From the above it will be readily understood that the entireconstruction is such that the parts may be readily assembled anddisassembled for adjustment and cleaning and for any other purposedesired, yet the parts are automatically held in perfect alignment andare always in postion for proper co-operation.

As changes of construction could be made within the scope of myinvention it is intended that all matter contained in the abovedescription or shown in the accompanying, drawings shall be interpretedas illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention what T claim as new and desire tosecure by Let-- ters Patent is:

l. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domemember mounted on said face plate, said face plate having an openingbeneath said dome member, a plate of insulating material within saiddome and extending across said open ing, a push button mounted in saiddome, contact terminals on said insulator plate positioned to becontacted and bridged by said push button and a spring between said pushbutton and said insulator plate to hold said insulator plate against aportion of the face plate projecting within the dome member.

2. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domeelement mounted on said face plate, an opening in said face platebeneath said dome, the face plate extending within said dome about saidopening, a piece of insulating material in said dome member spanningsaid opening, a pair of contact terminals on said piece of insulatingmaterial, a metallic push button extending through a hole in said domeelement and having an outwardly extending flange bearing against theinnner face of said dome element about said hole and adapted to contactwith and bridge said contacts, and a spring between said push button andsaid piece of insulating material holding said piece of insulatingmaterial against the portion of said face plate within said dome member.

3. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domemember mounted on said face plate, a piece of insulating material insaid dome member and resting against the face of said face plate withinsaid dome member, a pair of contact terminals in said piece ofinsulating material, a push button mounted on said dome member andadapted to contact with and bridge said contact terminals, and a springbetween said push button and said piece of insulating material, saidface plate being provided beneath said dome member with an openingspanned by said piece of insulating material, the edge of said openinghaving a notch for the insertion of said insulating piece.

4:. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate havinga substantially circular opening therein, said opening having a numberof notches in its periphery, a dome member mounted on said face plateover said opening, tongues on said dome member extending through saidnotches and turned back of said face plate, a piece of insulatingmaterial spanning said opening and resting against the face of saidplate within said dome member, contact terminals on said insulatingpiece, a push button in said dome member adapted to contact with andbridge said contact terminals, and a spring between said push button andsaid piece of insulating material.

5. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domemember on said plate, a piece of insulating material within said domemember resting against the face of said plate, contact terminals on saidinsulating piece, a push button in said dome member adapted to contactwith and bridge said contact terminals, and a spring between said pushbutton and said insulating piece to hold said push button out of contactwith said terminals and to hold said insulating piece against said faceplate.

6. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domemember mounted on said face plate and having a hole for the mounting ofa push button, a piece of insulating material in said dome member,contact terminals on said insulating piece, a metallic push buttonmounted in the hole of said dome and having a flange resting against theinner face of said dome about said hole, and a spring between said pushbutton and said insulating piece to hold said insulating piece againstthe face plate beneath same dome.

7. A device of the type described which comprises, a dome shaped pushbutton mounting member, a pair of contacts within said dome memberinsultated from each other, and a push button having an inner metallicshell normally insultated from said contacts and adapted to contact withand bridge said contacts, an intermediate in sulating layer and an outershell.

8. A device of the type described which comprises, a member for mountinga push button, a pair of insulated contact terminals in said member anda push button having a metallic inner member normally insulated fromsaid contacts and adapted to contact with and bridge said contactterminals and an operating outer face electrically insulated from saidinner metallic face.

9. A device of the type described which comprises, a dome member formounting a push button, a piece of insulating material loosely mountedin said dome member, a pair of contact terminals on said insulatingpiece, a push button mounted in said dome member and having a metalsurface adapted to cont-act with and bridge said contact terminals, anda spring between said push button and said insulating piece to hold saidinsulating piece against the base of said dome member and said pushbutton out of contact with said contact terminals.

10. In a device of the type described, a face plate having asubstantially circular opening, said opening having a number of notchesin its periphery, a dome member mounted on said face plate over saidopening, and tongues on said dome member extending through said notchesand bent over against the rear of said face plate to hold said domemember rigidly in position over said opening, said face plate having anotch from said opening of sufiicient width to receive an end of abridge member.

11. In a device of the type described, a push button contact elementwhich comprises a metallic dome shaped shell having an outwardlyprojecting flange adapted to contact with and bridge a pair of contactterminals, and a coating of insulating material covering the oppositeand convex side of said shell.

12. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domemember mounted on said face plate, an opening in said face plate withinsaid dome forming a circular flange about said opening, a bridge memberspanning said opening and resting on said flange, contact membersmounted on said bridge member and insulated from each other, said domehaving a push button opening, a push button in said opening, and aspring between said push button and said bridge member.

13. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a domemember mounted on said face plate, an o ening in said face plate withinsaid dome orming a circular flange about said opening, a bridge memberspanning said opening and resting on said flange, said opening having anotch adapted to permit the passage of one end of said bridge, contactmembers mounted on said bridge member and insulated from each other,said dome having a push button opening, a push button in said opening,and a spring between said push button and said bridge member.

Signed this 21st day of December, 1922.

ARTHUR G. GAYNOR.

